Hands in the Sky
by shedyourmask
Summary: Introducing Juliana Winchester… Sam and Dean’s sister. Wonder what kind of trouble she’ll bring with her. WinSister. Starting at episode one.
1. Chapter 1

**Fic**: 1x01 Pilot

**Title: **Hands in the Sky

**Summary: **Introducing Juliana Winchester… Sam and Dean's sister. Wonder what kind of trouble she'll bring with her.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except for Juliana.

**Episode 1x01: Pilot**

Lawrence, Kansas : November 2, 1983

22 years ago

- - - -

A blonde woman entered the baby's room holding her oldest son. "Come on, let's say goodnight to your brother and sister." She let the boy down on the floor and he ran over to his brother fussing in the cradle. "Night, Sammy." He laid a kiss on the baby's forehead. Then he went over to his sister dosing off in her little bed. "Night, Jules." She opened her eyes when she felt the bed dip down, and let out a little giggle. "Dee." She gurgled out. That made him giggle as well, and laid the same kiss on her forehead. Her mom came over and stood behind her son. She brushed back her daughter's bangs and told her a sweet goodbye.

"Hey, Dean." They all heard from the doorway. The oldest son immediately got off of the bed and ran to his father and jumped into his arms. "So what do you think? Do you think Sammy is ready to through around a football?" He asked. Then he made his way over to his only daughter's bed and gazed down at her. "Hey, Jules."

She looked up at him, and gave him a big, yet drowsy smile. "Dada!"

"How's my little girl?" He asked with wonder in his eyes. She'd grown so big. Her dark hair, which came from his side of the family, had grown a little bit longer over the past few months. They were going to have to give her another haircut. Her hazel eyes were starting to droop lower and lower, so he decided to let her sleep. "Love you, sweetheart." He heard the familiar "Loves you." slurred out, and felt a twinge in his heart. His family was certainly everything to him. "Sweet dreams, Sam." He said to his youngest child, and then left the room.

Maybe if they had stayed longer in the room or maybe if they took that family vacation that they were planning to go on for months. Maybe then the following events wouldn't have happened. Maybe they would have stayed a perfect family. Maybe.

Within a matter of minutes, the lights started to flicker, Sammy's mobile started to malfunction, and the clock stopped ticking. Juliana heard someone in her and Sammy's room so she opened her eyes slightly. Seeing a large man in front of her brother's crib, and thinking it was her Daddy she let out another gurgle. The man turned around and gave a gentle hush. She quieted down right away, but continued to watch. Sammy must have seen him, too, because he started to fuss around. Her Daddy said something to her brother that quieted him as well. Then she heard a noise by the door, and noticed that her Mommy got up. Her smile got bigger. It lessened when her Mommy left the room, but within a couple of minutes she was back again, but something wasn't right.

John heard his wife's scream coming from upstairs, and immediately went to go find out what was wrong. "Mary! Mary!" He ran up the steps, but when he went to Sammy and Jules' room, everything seemed to be in order. Maybe he was dreaming. He quickly looked around, and then went to see if his kids were alright. Sammy was staring right back at him, when he saw a strange droplet on the baby blanket. Then he heard his daughter sniffle. He went over to check on her, when he saw that she was sitting on her bed against the wall, staring at the ceiling. She seemed perfectly normal, but then one tear fell down her cheek. There was no way to expect what he had seen on the ceiling. His beautiful wife, staring back at him, with her stomach full of blood. Then all of a sudden she burst into flames.

He reacted quickly, and grabbed Sammy from his crib. He went outside into the hall and handed his youngest son over to his oldest son. "Take your brother outside as fast as you can. Don't look back. Now, Dean! Go!" When he saw the flames reaching farther out into the hallway, he prayed that his daughter would be okay. He ran back into the room, and saw that she was in the same position as before. Staring up at ceiling. He picked her up with one of his arms, and carried her downstairs. When he reached his other two children, he picked them up with his free arm, and sprinted them farther across the yard.

When the fire trucks, police and ambulances got there, all four of the surviving Winchesters were in shock. They knew that from that moment on, their lives would never stay the same.

- - - -

Sunnyvale, California : Present

- - - -

Juliana Winchester was in the middle of finalizing a sale on the most expensive kayak in the store when the phone rang. "Wilson's Outdoors Shop. This is Juliana speaking, how may I help you?" There was a slight hesitation on the other end of the line. "Hello? Wilson's Outdoors Shop."

A masculine voice cleared his throat. She heard him inhale before saying, "Dad's missing…" Dean. She didn't know what shocked her the most. Dean actually calling her or Dean calling her about dad. Either way, Juliana knew that this was one phone call that didn't need an audience. "Hold on a second." She softly said into the phone, and then she called one of her co-workers to help her customer. She took the wireless phone into the back, and then went outside to have more privacy.

"What do you mean Dad's missing? When was the last time you talked to him?" She heard him scoff into the phone. Leaning against the back of the store, she closed her eyes slightly. This is so awkward. While growing up she and Dean always had a loving brother/sister relationship, that is until he decided to walk in their father's footsteps. Sure she helped her dad in his current cases every week and even saved his ass one or twice, it was like she dipped her foot into it, but Dean jumped in and the water was way passed his head.

After she graduated high school, Dean couldn't understand why she wouldn't go on the road with him and Dad. Then he turned furious when he found out that she was off hunting on her own. He would never understand how she felt about the whole situation, but at the same time, he never really took the time to talk to her about it. The last time they talked was about two months ago, and one of her cases went sour. She called him and her Dad up, and asked him to vanquish this one vengeful spirit. They came down and while they were fighting the latest big bad, she got herself shot. It wasn't serious, barely a graze, but Dean blew up at her. Screaming about how if she learned out to fight properly, and if she was a little more careful, she wouldn't get shot every other week. She then defended herself by saying that some people are more than just their job, and that she 'has another life outside of this dysfunctional hellhole'. He left the motel room that he and their dad were staying at, and hadn't talked to her since. Her Dad just stood there taking it all in, and when she went to apologize, he just gave her a kiss on the forehead and sent her on her way.

"He went on a hunting trip in Jericho three weeks ago and then I got this random voice mail from him. Have _you_ heard from him?" Juliana could practically hear his jaw clench. He's always so impatient.

"I haven't talked to him in a while, maybe like almost a month? Have you asked Sam, yet?" As soon as she heard his pause, she knew that he hadn't. "You should give him a call, or a visit or something, Dean. He is family."

"Yeah, well. I was going to ask you if you wanted to help me look for Dad. Maybe ask Sammy, too. You in?"

"Dean… I have work. I can't just up and leave, you know that. How about we go next weekend? I have Thursday to Sunday off." She was interrupted with a sharp laugh.

"Of course. And then when we find him, it'll be a corpse that'll help us find mom's killer. Great job."

"Dean…"

"No, it's okay. I shouldn't even have asked you. See you around."

She was about to try and defend herself, but was met with the dial tone. She immediately tried to call Sam, but all she got was his answering machine. She hung up right away. After brushing a hand through her hair to get herself centered, she went back inside. "My life's awesome." She whispered to herself sarcastically. Going up to the front of the store, she put the phone back in the holder. Trying to paste a fake smile on her face, she went and asked the closest costumer if they needed any help.

- - - -

Juliana and Sam were never as close as she and Dean were. That is, when they were younger. As they grew up, and when Sam wanted to go to college, they started to click more. Never really having a solid home, she grabbed at the opportunity in Sunnyvale, California. The place was beautiful, it had some woods not that far away, and it was only 25 minutes away from her younger brother. They used to just have random visits to one another when he started college, but when she first rented her apartment Sam, Jess and she would have small dinners every Sunday. It turned into a healthy routine, and it also helped her relationship with Sam. She understood his need for a normal life, and he understood her need for a little adventure with her hunting trips. She also became great friends with Jess. Jess was pretty much the only girl that Juliana let herself be normal around. They would talk all the time, getting and giving advice like two regular girls did. There wouldn't be a weekend that passed where they didn't talk.

So when she didn't get a call from Jess or Sam about Sunday dinner, she got a little antsy. She assumed that Dean called Sam and then they maybe went to go and find their dad, but she knew that he had an interview in like 9 hours and he never called to talk about what happened.

Juliana was in the middle of washing dishes when she felt that annoying sensation in the pit of her stomach. It wasn't new to her, but it only ever happened when she was out hunting. It only took her a couple of minutes to understand that something was wrong, so she ran out of her apartment, and jumped into her car. She was at Sam and Jess' place within fifteen minutes. Her eyes widened when she saw Dean's 1967 Chevy Impala about to pull away from the house. She quickly flashed her high beams at him, and thankfully that stopped him. She slammed her car into park, and ran inside Sam's house. Dean followed quickly after her, and they were running through the door when they heard Sam screaming Jess' name and then a big explosion of fire. "No. Not again!" She screamed out. She ran even faster up the steps, and stopped suddenly when she saw one of her best friends on the ceiling bleeding with fire all around her, just like her mother had looked 22 years before. Dean saw his sister's state, and grabbed Dean himself. Then he gave her a sharp shove out of the room to get her feet moving, all the while trying to keep Sam from hurting himself by going to save Jess.

It seemed like forever until the fire trucks and police got there. His sister was sitting on the roof of the Impala just like she had all those years ago. She just blankly stared into the flames that were coming from the second-story window. Dean gave his head a slight shake, and made his way to his brother's side. While Sam was loading up the sawed-off shotgun, all Dead could do was just stare at him. He looked just like his father did. With a small sniffle and large exhale, Sam threw the gun into the trunk. The only thing he said was, "We've got work to do." and shut the trunk. Dean just nodded, giving Sam his full support; he was going to need it. Seeing Sammy slid into the passenger seat, he looked up to his sister. Walking slowly to the front of the car where she sat, he asked her what she wanted to do. Giving him a quick glance before walking to her car right next to his, she said, "Follow me to my apartment. I need to make some final arrangements." And shut her driver's door. Giving his face a hard rub, he climbed into his baby. 'Yeah.' He said to himself. 'We've got work to do.'


	2. Chapter 2

**Fic**: 1x02 Wendigo

**Series**: Hands in the Sky

**Summary**: Introducing Juliana Winchester… Sam and Dean's sister. Wonder what kind of trouble she'll bring with her. Check out the first fic in this series!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything except for Juliana.

**Episode: 1x02 Wendigo**

Palo Alto, California

- - - -

Juliana Winchester had been in cemeteries countless times. In fact, she killed her first ghost in a cemetery, but to actually be in one for the purpose of telling a loved one goodbye was too hard for her to understand. But there she was, standing by her best friend's tombstone with a white stuffed bear in her left fist. The normal thing to lie next to a gravestone would be flowers. But as soon as she entered the florist, she turned right around. Jess was too beautiful of a girl, and flowers just didn't describe how special she was. Jules wanted to give Jess something to always have with her, something that had meaning. 

The girls used to have this ongoing joke when they first became friends, that if it wasn't for Jess' help, Jules would be completely useless as a woman. A couple of months into the friendship, Jess decided to have a girls' night in, complete with movies, chocolate, and a sleepover. When Juliana told Jess that she never had a sleepover before, the blonde girl was flabbergasted and decided to rectify it. So the next week, when the girls' night was planned, Jess went to the store and bought all sorts of surprises. 

As soon as Jules walked into Jess' dorm room that night, she couldn't wipe the smile off of her face. Jessica laid out two sleeping bags filled with Barbie dolls, weird stuffed animals, and these huge pillows with famous cartoon girls on them. When it came time to watch the movies, she rented all old-school Disney movies, and made them eat enormous sundaes. As they laid down to sleep, she gave Juliana a small white teddy bear and said that 'he would watch over her in her sleep'. Juliana laughed it off, never letting Jess know that fake fur and some stuffing wouldn't save any child from the monsters under their bed. She also never let Jess know that she had saved that teddy bear, and kept it by her side, when she slept, every night after that. At least in the dark with that piece of fluff she could pretend that the boogeyman wasn't real, and that she had lived a normal life.

Juliana had a small smile on her face as she remembered that night. She was going to miss that girl like crazy. In the back of her mind she had already started to think of her like a sister, and in her heart it felt like she lost another piece of herself, another part of her family. 

She gave a small kiss on two of her fingers, and then pressed them tenderly onto the bear's head. She brushed the fur back one last time, and then she gave her own head a slight shake. Exhaling softly, she slowly lowered the bear to the ground next to the picture frame, whispering, "I hope this watches over _you_ as you sleep." And walked away. The trees were gently swaying back and forth, and she wanted to chop them down. It was like they were mocking her; they had no right acting peaceful on a day like today. 

Hearing footsteps to the left of her, she saw her younger brother hesitate at a nearby headstone. Lowering her eyes with respect, she swiftly passed him. It was Sam's turn to say his goodbyes.

- - - -

On the road.

- - - -

A little over a week later they were driving in the car, when Sam had another nightmare. Juliana was in the backseat pretending to sleep and Dean was driving his baby. They all jumped when Sam sat up gasping.

"You okay?" Dean asked with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sam answered, blinking the sleep away. Juliana just kept her eyes closed. The boys needed to talk anyways.

"Another nightmare?" The oldest brother asked, while giving the youngest one a quick glance. Sam only cleared his throat to answer.

"Wanna drive for awhile?" Jules' eyes popped open. They met Dean's in the rearview mirror, and then she furrowed her brow. 'Is he serious?'

Sam was thinking along the same lines. Turning his body towards the driver's seat, he said, "Dean, your whole life, you've never asked me that." 

"Just thought you might want to, never mind." It was clear to everybody in the car that Dean was worried about his brother. And so he should be. It's not everyday that someone loses the love of their life, especially the same way that they lost their mother.

Trying to break up the awkward conversation that her brothers were having in front of her, Juliana popped up from her previous position and asked where they were.

"We are just outside of Grand Junction." After murmuring a quick thank you, she plopped back into the seats. Sliding over the window she propped her elbow on the door to hold her head up as she watched the scenery go by. 'Look…trees. Again.'

In front of her, Sam was unfolding the map that they had, and tried to nonchalantly bring up their leaving. "You know what? Maybe we shouldn't have left Stanford so soon."

That made Dean blink. "Sam, we dug around there for a week. We came up with nothing. If you wanna find the thing that killed Jessica --" He left the sentence open, know that Sam would finish.

"We gotta find Dad first." Sam let out a soft yet exasperated sigh.

"Dad disappearing? And this thing showing up again after 20 years? It's no coincidence. Dad will have answers. He'll know what to do." Dean said. He kept repeating the same things over and over, thinking that if he kept saying it, it might come true.

Trying to get out of that subject Sam said, "Its weird man. These coordinates he left us, this Blackwater ridge…"

"Yeah, what about it?" Dean asked.

"There's nothing there. It's just woods. Why is he sending us to the middle of nowhere?" The boys just sat there staring, trying to come up with an answer.

"At least you brought your sister along, eh? Getting lost in woods wouldn't really bode well for you two." Juliana joked, trying to add some humor into the situation.

"I can handle myself, little girl." Dean responded immediately. That made Sam and Jules smirk. That boy certainly had enough arrogance to last ten lifetimes.

- - - -

Lost Creek, Colorado

- - - -

After learning from Ranger Wilkinson that the sister of one of the boys, that went missing, was asking a lot of questions, the three Winchester siblings headed straight to her house to investigate, maybe she would have more information. Haley Collins and her younger brother, Ben, tried as hard as they could to convince them that their brother Tommy wouldn't just go away on a camping trip and not contact them. They swore that something wasn't right.

Jules was ready to just call it a fluke and have them head on their way, but Sam saw a suspicious flash on the video feed that the girl got from her brother. Later, after slowing the video down, Sam showed his brother and sister what he saw at the kids' house. Looking closely they could see a distinct figure passing behind the camper's tent. Replaying it once more, they got to see shadow in slow-mo. 

"That's three frames. It's a fraction of a second. Whatever that thing is, it can move."

Dean quickly hit Sam in the shoulder and said, "Told you something weird was going on." Jules just rolled her eyes. From the beginning, she and Sam thought that he was only doing this so he could get some action later, at least now they can try and save the girl's brother.

Gently closing his precious computer, Sam added, "Yeah. I got one more thing. In '59 one camper survived the supposed grizzly attack. Just a kid. Barely crawled out of the woods alive." That definitely peeked both Jules and Dean's interests.

"Is there a name?" Jules interrupted, leaning forward across the table.

Looking very smug, Sam just gave them a grin. Finishing the rest of her beer, she sighed and then got up. "Let's get going then." And headed outside of the bar, knowing that her brothers were right behind her. This was going to be an interesting weekend.

- - - -

"Look, Ranger, I don't know why you're asking me about this." The fragile old man said to them as he led them into his dark and mussed up living room. "It's public record. I was a kid. My parents got mauled by a…"

"A grizzly? That's what attacked them?" Sam interrupted. All they got was tense silence in response.

Dean walked forward and said, "The other people that went missing that year. Those were bear attacks too?" trying to get a better response. "What about all the people that went missing this year? Same thing?"

Juliana usually left Sam and even Dean to deal with the families of victims. Her dad used to say that she just couldn't connect with them as well as her brothers did. 'What you do have,' he said, 'is a level head on your shoulders, and when the time comes, you'll know how to use it.' Seeing that they were getting nowhere with the older man, Jules stepped forward to try and use her level-head.

"If we knew what we were dealing with, we might be able to stop it." She pleaded softly, trying to get him to see reason.

Slipping the cigarette out from between his lips, the man said sardonically, "I seriously doubt that. Anyways, I don't see what difference it would make." After placing himself down in an old chair, he added, "You wouldn't believe me. Nobody ever did."

Sam's eyes immediately grew sympathetic. "Mr. Shaw. What did you see?" He quietly rested against the couch.

Staring blankly at the kids, he just said, "Nothing. It moved too fast to see. It hid too well. I heard it, though." His eyes widened from remembering the event. "A roar. Like no man or animal I heard."

Sam then whispered, "It came at night?" Mr. Shaw nodded. "Got inside your tent?"

Correcting him, the old man said, "It got inside our cabin. I was sleeping in front of the fireplace when it came in. It didn't smash a window or break the door… it unlocked it. You know of a bear that could do something like that?" He asked, daring them to think that he was crazy. "I didn't even wake up until I heard my parents screaming.

"It killed them?" Jules asked with a furrowed brow.

Staring straight at her, Mr. Shaw told them, "Dragged them off into the night. Why it left me alive… been asking myself that ever since." He looked down, and then started to pull the neckline of his shirt to the side. "Did leave me this, though." There were four long gash marks that filled the whole left side of his chest. "There's something evil in those woods. It was some sort of demon."

- - - -

Blackwater Ridge, Colorado

- - - -

After the Winchesters concluded that whatever had been taking campers was a creature and that it was 'corporeal', they headed straight to the Impala's trunk. While Dean was stuffing as many guns as he could find into a duffle bag, and when Juliana was getting some hiking gear together inside the Impala, Sam spoke up.

"We cannot let that Haley girl go out there." He said firmly. 'That's right,' Jules thought. 'The girl is going out with a guide tomorrow morning.'

"Yeah? What are we going to tell her? She can't go into the woods because of a big, scary monster?" Dean asked sarcastically.

"Yeah."The younger brother said with a stone cold expression. That made Jules head pop out of the car.

"Her brother's missing, Sam. She's not just gonna sit this out. No. We go with her, we protect her, and we keep out eyes peeled for our fuzzy predator friend." Dean added with lackluster humor.

"So finding Dad's not enough?" Sam roughly shuts the secret compartment, and then the trunk. "Now we gotta baby-sit, too?"

Dean just stood there staring at him.

"What?" Sam asked defensively.

Nonchalantly, the older brother said, "Nothing." And then shoved the duffle into Sam's chest. He sent a frustrated glare towards his sister, but all she could do was look at her youngest brother.

It wasn't the first time that Sam had acted that way. Earlier that day, after they talked to the Ranger, he was itching to go and find their father. His impatience didn't really surprise anyone; it was the way he acted, that had his siblings share a look. Sam was never the 'shoot first, ask questions later' type of guy, and with him having reoccurring nightmares and acting like a stranger, they were determined that he wasn't taking Jess' death that well. Maybe that should have waited before taking on a new case.

- - - -

Early the next morning, they saw that Haley and Ben were already at the trail, along with their guide. With only a little struggle trying to convince the guide to let them travel with the two Collins siblings, they headed off. They arrived in the area that Haley's brother was last at with little drama. Dean almost got his foot clamped in a bear trap, he also had a few power struggles, but they all arrived in one piece. Sam and Dean weren't used to hiking up an unsteady mountain, so Jules couldn't help but to smile. 'Their feet are going to be so sore tomorrow.'

After walking along the path, they finally fell upon the camp site, and the Winchesters weren't that too surprised with the findings. The tents were strewn all around with blood everywhere. Huge gashes were made in the tent. Sam just hoped that Collins' brother was okay.

It wasn't until they were lured out of the camp site; by fake screaming did he realize what was going on. After noticing that all the provisions they took with them were stolen when they went to investigate the sound, Sam had a feeling of what was out there. Calling Dean and Jules to the side, he quickly opened their dad's journal. Flipping the pages, until he found the one that he wanted, he spun the book around and told them to check it out.

"Oh, come on." Dean said, with a chuckle. "Wendigos are in the Minnesota woods or northern Michigan. I've never even heard of one this far west."

"Think about it, Dean. The claws, the way it can mimic a human voice."

Seeing Sam's reasoning, all Dean could say was, "Great." And then push his hand through his hair in frustration.

Finally latching onto what they meant, Jules sighed. "Well then guns are useless."

Sam agreed and then handed the book back to Dean, and said, "We gotta get these people back to safety." Jules full heartedly agreed.

The boys stomped into the camp site trying to persuade the others to leave right away. The guide, not knowing what was out there, took offense to them thinking that he couldn't do his job of protecting the younger two. After Dean and the guide nearly got into a fistfight, they all decided on settling in and trying to protect themselves with whatever they had; which happened to be a stick and some dirt.

Seeing Jules carving a circular shape with some lines into the ground, Haley couldn't help but to ask. Juliana answered with, "They're Anasazi symbols. For protection. The Wendigo can't cross over them." Hearing the guide chuckle loudly from his post, Jules tried to ignore him and continue with the next symbol. Dean just said, "Nobody likes a skeptic, Roy", from his own look-out point.

Jules looked up from the last symbol that she had to draw and saw that Sam had secluded himself from the others. Brushing the dirt off of her jeans while she stood up, she decided to make her way over to the youngest brother.

"Wanna tell me what's wrong?" She asked him as gently as she could.

"I'm…" Sam started talking but Jules quickly interrupted, knowing what he was going to say.

"No. You're _not _fine. You're like a powder keg, Sam. It's not like you. Dean's supposed to be the belligerent one, not you." She said trying to get a laugh out of him. Seeing that she failed, she decided to let him talk when he wanted to. After a few seconds of silence, she heard him take a deep breath.

"Dad's not here. I mean, that much we know for sure, right? He would have left us a message, a sign, right?" She could tell that he was slowly but surely losing hope.

"Yeah. You're probably right. I mean, maybe he wasn't even in Lost Creek to begin with." She whispered while looking at him with her head cocked to one side.

"Then let's get these people out of here and let's head for the road. Go find Dad. I mean, why are we still even here?" he asked, frustrated.

It was her turn to take a deep breath. Looking around, she saw that Dean was focusing on the two of them. Motioning him forward with her head, she turned to face the brother next to her. They heard Dean come up to stand next to the two of them, and when she pulled the journal from Dean's hands they both looked.

"Why are we here?" She repeated his question. Then she slapped her hand on the top of their dad's journal. "This is why. This book. This is Dad's single most valuable possession. Everything he knows about, every evil thing is in here. And he's passed it on to us." She finished strongly.

Dean saw where his sister was going with her little speech. Kneeling down to face them, eye to eye, he spoke up. "I think Dad wants us to pick up where he left off. You know, saving people, hunting things. The family business." All Jules could do was nod along with her brother.

Sam just looked at the two of them, and then shook his head. "It makes no sense." He wiped a hand across his face. "Why..? Why doesn't he just call us? Why doesn't he tell us what he wants, tell us where he is?"

"I don't know." Dean answered softly. "But the way I see it…Dad's given us a job to do, and I intend to do it."

"Guys, no." He pleaded after he saw that Jules was silently agreeing with the older brother. "I gotta find Dad. I gotta find Jessica's killer. It's the only thing I can think about."

"Alright. Sam, we'll find them. I promise." Dean said trying to appease the man. Then he changed his tone to a slightly rougher one, one that they've heard plenty of times from their father. "Listen to me. You've gotta prepare yourself. I mean, this search could take a while. And all that anger…you can't keep it burning over the long haul. It's gonna kill you. You gotta have patience, man." Dean finished, firmly.

Sam stared hard at his brother, and then shook his head, once more. "How do you do it? How does Dad do it? Jesus, Jules, how do _you_ do it?" He looked over at her.

She just pointed her head in the direction of the Collins siblings by the fire. "Them."

Dean nodded with agreement. "Our family's so screwed to hell; maybe we can help some others. It makes things a little bit more bearable."

Sam just pursed his lips and glanced at the kids.

Dean spoke up once more. "I'll tell you what else helps. Killing as many evil sons of bitches as I possibly can." And gave Sam a reassuring smile.

Just then, all hell broke loose. They heard a petrified scream throughout the woods, and with the guide thinking that he could save the day, shot in the direction of the Wendigo. Assuming that he hurt it, he went outside of the protection circle. Sam, Dean and Jules all went into the woods trying to find him, but it was too dark, and the Wendigos were too fast. After coming to the conclusion that they would try and find him in the morning, they headed back to camp. Haley and Ben were sitting in the same position when the Winchesters left, but this time they were holding on to each other for safety. 

Looking at them, all Dean could think of, was when he when he went with his sister on her first hunt without their dad. The entire time they were searching for clues of the creature that was killing harmless Amish children, Dean could see that Jules was scared out of her mind. The mission that they got from their father was to stay out in the field for most of the night, and see if anything strange happened. 

About two hours past dark, Jules was ready to call it quits, give up the illusion of a hunter, and leave it up to the men in her family. Dean firmly sat her down, and knelt in front of her. He was already sixteen, and she was going to be fifteen in a couple of months, but he still felt like he owed it to her to be a pseudo father figure. He lectured her about the consequences of what would happen if they left, and by the end he had Jules feeling ashamed. Seeing her downtrodden expression, he sighed and plopped down next to her. Slinging his arm around her shoulder and after pulling her to his side firmly, he started to talk.

"I know it feels unfair for you to have to do this, when all you really want to do is go to that stupid dance tomorrow, but think of what we could do if we stay here. There won't be anymore little kids dying, and we would be the ones that could say that we helped." He ruffled up her hair a little bit. Seeing her give him a pretend glare, he smiled and then went on, "What's more important? A silly dance that you'll probably forget by next year? Or the lives that you saved? They will always remember you… and you'll never forget this night. That I can promise you." He breathed in, and then pretended to get up and collect their bags.

"Dean. Wait." The little girl whispered. He halted, and then turned to look at his sister. She slowly got up from her seat, and then walked towards him. Dean had hit his growth spurt that year, so when she was standing toe-to-toe to her older brother, she had to look up. "You'll stay with me, right? You won't leave me alone?" She questioned with a pleading tone.

Dean quickly wrapped his arms around her shoulders and squeezed. "You won't be alone, kid. I'm here to protect you, always." She wrapped her arms around his waist, and they stood like that, for what seemed like hours. 

The older Winchester was knocked out of the memory, when Sam slung himself down next to a broken tree trunk. Then he went on to try and find where his sister went. He started to freak out when he couldn't see her, and was about to get up and search for her, when she came around a tree. Sighing, he settled back down. His family was safe, he told himself. Now they just have to make sure that their dad was too.

- - - -

The next morning, they all started out trying to look for the guide. They caught onto the Wendigo's trail pretty easily, and started to go further into the backcountry. It wasn't until the guide's body fell from the tree, and after they started to get chased from the creature, that they thought they were completely screwed.

Jumping over fallen trees, and swerving in between branches, all Jules could do was be thankful that she brought sensible shoes. If she would have worn the biker boots that Dean had on, she would have certainly broken an ankle or two. The growl that came out of the trees to the right of her, made her run even faster. Looking back she saw that Haley was struggling a bit, so she reached back and grabbed the girl's hand. Their pace was going really well, until an ugly beast stood in front of them. It's eyes bulged out, and it looked like a huge bat-skeleton with skin. They didn't have anytime to react before the thing reached forward and took both of them under it's arms.

The boys were still running when they heard Haley let out a loud scream. Running even faster, Dean went to where the sound was. Everything seemed normal, that is, until Sam lifted up the broken bottle that Jules was going to use to torch the thing. Cursing loudly, Dean continued on his way. 'I told her that I would protect her.' He thought.

Never one to give up hope, Sam tried to call for his sister. "Jules!" he screamed. He swung his head from left to right, trying to find a hint to where the Wendigo took his sister. It wasn't until about an hour later, when Ben found a piece of cloth from his sister's shirt. They followed the trail that she left for them, a button here and a scrunchy there, all the way up to an old miner's cave. They walked quickly, with Dean leading them, into the mouth of the grotto. They tried to be quiet, but when they started to walk on wooden planks, the moldy wood collapsed, making them fall to the underground cavern. 

There they found countless skulls, and feared for the worst. That was until they heard chains rattling nearby. Getting up quickly, they went over to investigate and saw the two girls hanging from ceiling by their hands.

"Jules!" Dean yelled, and went to untie her. The youngest boy, Ben, tried to wake up Haley. Sam was looking around; making sure that creature wasn't around and then went to help the other two boys.

"Jules. Are you okay?" Sam whispered. She could only grunt out a 'yeah' before grimacing. When they got her down, she was pretty sure that the Wendigo broke a few of her ribs, because it felt like her entire chest was on fire. "Where is it?" She demanded, while scoping out the place, looking for it.

"It's gone for now." Dean told her as he gave her a once over, making sure that she didn't need any medical help right away. They were interrupted, however, when they heard sniffing from the Collins. Looking over, the older ones noticed that Tommy was hanging from the ceiling as well, but it seemed like he was alive. They got him down immediately, and while they were trying to get him standing, Dean went over to a duffle bag that must have been stolen and found two flare guns. He was going to finish this. 

All six of them started to shuffle along the damp tunnels, all searching for a way out. It wasn't until they heard the familiar growl that they had to stop. Dean, making up his mind, turned to Sam and said, "You thinking, what I'm thinking?" Sam responded with, "I think so."

Jules only had to take one look at her older brother's face to tell what he had planned. "Dean. No." She said firmly.

He just pursed his lips and told her to stay with Sam and the others. Then all of a sudden he yelled out, "It's chow time, you freaky bastards. Yeah. That's right. Bring it on, baby. I taste good." He followed the tunnel out and went around the corner.

Jules just shook her head, and then glared at Sam. "He's going to get himself killed." She huffed and then went with the others when they continued down a different tunnel. When they reached the entrance to the cave, Sam told Ben to take the two girls and Tommy out. Jules firmed put her foot down. No way was she going to let her brothers get hurt. Shaking off the pain, she followed after Sam, and they continued the search. They were waiting for the bitch to come out; when they heard some rocks fall to the left of them. Turning around, they noticed that the Wendigo was literally two feet away from them. 

Thinking quickly, Sam turned around and shot off the flare gun that he had with him. The light was so bright, that Jules had to cover her eyes. Feeling Sam push the middle of back to direct her, she started to run blindly. They met back up with the Collins, and all of them except for Dean were on their way to safety. They thought that they were seconds from getting out; until they saw that the opening that they ran to had boards covering the exit. Just perfect.

The youngest Winchester pushed all four of them behind his back, and tried to cover them up with arms splayed open. They saw the Wendigo coming closer and closer to where they were trapped, so Sam clenched his jaw, ready to feel the claws dig in. But before the beast even had a chance, Dean ran around the corner, screamed, "Hey!" and shot the Wendigo right in the stomach, causing it to combust. "Not bad, huh?" Dean joked, and the rest couldn't help but chuckle with relief.

It took them the rest of the day to get back to town, but they were all thankful to be back alive, that it didn't really matter. With a kiss on the cheek to Dean, a brief hug to Jules, and a sincere thank you to Sam, Haley and Ben climbed into the ambulance with their brother, Tommy. Sam leaned against the Impala in between his sister and brother, watching the ambulance drive away.

"Sam, you know we're going to find Dad, right?" Dean asked, turning to his brother slightly.

"Yeah, I know." Sam agreed solemnly, but then with a slight glint to his eye said, "But in the meantime… I'm driving." Jules thought Dean was going to refuse, but then he tossed up the keys for Sam to catch. They all jumped into the car, Jules slowly crawled into the back as usual, and headed off to the next city, all with the same question running through their heads. Are they really going to find their dad?

\/p


	3. Interlude

**Fic**: Hurricane

**Series**: Hands in the Sky

**Summary**: Right after her boyfriend of 2 months broke up with her, Jules overheard her father talking about a new case. Apparently there's this spirit of an old woman that 'cures' broken hearts, but then random people all over the county were showing up dead. When Juliana goes to investigate, will her mind get clouded with the idea of being in peace?

**Disclaimer**: I just own Juliana Winchester.. And the other random people you guys haven't met.

**Interlude - Hurricane**

June 24, 1997

"David, why are you doing this?" Juliana questioned with a gentle voice to the high school senior next to her. She didn't want to spook him even more than she already had.

That night they decided to go out to the cliff and 'park' like normal teenagers did. Unfortunately the night was in line with the lunar cycle perfectly, and right when David was slowly making his way to second base, a loud scrap echoed in the car. The two teens immediately broke apart, thinking that it was Jules' dad, John, coming to the cliffs to find out what was taking them so long to get home. It wouldn't have been the first time. They both breathed a sigh, when they didn't see anyone outside of the vehicle, and went right back to what they were doing. Just as David was kissing up along Juliana's neck, the sound came again.

Getting really annoyed, David said that he would go out and check what it was. He ignored his girlfriend when she tried to convince him to stay in the car with her, and when he went to open the car door; something broke the window and pulled his body through the broken glass. Swearing loudly, Jules reached into her handbag and removed the small handgun that her dad gave her when she turned sixteen. Opening up the clip, she looked to see what type of bullets was in there, silver. Perfect.

She slammed open her own car door, and ran towards the two bodies that were now wrestling on the ground. The sun had gone down hours before and it wasn't going to be coming up anytime soon, so the only way to get rid of this thing was to kill it all the while trying not tp kill her boyfriend. She shot one bullet into the air, and the attacker flew off the boy. She heard the familiar werewolf growl, and aim her gun right at its heart. She only needed to fire once, to hear the creature collapsed onto the ground. She rushed over to David, and was relieved when she saw that he only suffered a couple of scratches on his cheek. She reached down to help him up, but he refused.

Slinging her arm to the side, he crouched up himself, and started to walk towards his car. He barely left her enough time to get her seatbelt buckled before he sped off to the apartment that she, her brothers and her father were staying at for the time being. When he was in front of her home, he stopped the car sharply, and refused to look at her.

"David?" Jules questioned softly. All she could do was just stare at the beautiful boy sitting next to her.

"I want you to get out, Juliana." Juliana. He never said her full name, ever.

"Wha--" She started to talk, but he interrupted her.

"I want you out of my car, right now." He clenched his jaw so tightly, that she was worried that he would break it.

"David, why are you doing this?" She asked gently, trying to remain calm.

"Why?" He laughed out sardonically. "Why, Jules? Because you're a freak." She couldn't help but flinch at that. He didn't notice, so he continued. "I heard all the rumors about your family, but I thought they were just lies. Now I know it's the truth. So go on inside with your freak brothers and your freakier dad. You belong there." He finished with a smirk.

"That's enough." She whispered tersely. She wasn't going to let him bad mouth her family. He could say whatever he wanted to and about her, but he didn't have a right to tear down her family.

He let out another dry laugh. "It'll never be enough. Do you know what they say about you guys? That you all go dancing in the woods naked, covered in blood. And that the reason you guys wear those stupid star necklaces is because you secretly worship Satan." He shuddered in disgust. "I don't even want to be near you right now. I mean… look at what you did to that thing out on the cliffs. You shot him right in the heart, and didn't even flinch. Perfect aim, too. You're probably freakier than your dad."

All she could do was just sit there with her mouth opening and closing, praying for something to say. 'How could he be acting this way?'

"Now get out of my car, creep." He slipped the car into drive, and waited impatiently. She turned towards the door, and fumbled for the handle. He nearly sent her flailing to the ground when he sped off, but her good reaction time kept her someone settled. She gave her street a quick once over, making sure that nobody heard or saw any of that, and raced up the stairs to their apartment.

Unlocking the door proved to be somewhat difficult because of her shaky hands, but she managed to fit the key into the lock. She said a brief greeting to her brothers on the couch watching some sort of television show, and to her dad cleaning his guns at the kitchen table, and then rushed to bathroom. It took her seconds to start the shower, and strip off her clothes.

Only when the water pelted down on top of her head, did she allow herself to cry. Huge gasping sobs racked her entire body, and didn't let off until she felt completely weak. She quickly washed up, and then turned off the water. After drying off and wrapping the towel around her chest, she looked into the foggy mirror. Jules couldn't see any signs that she had cried at all, and was thankful for that. It didn't matter how much she hated David at the time, she wouldn't allow a human being be on the bad side of the Winchester men, if she had anything to do with it. She went into her room and changed into her pajamas and then tiptoed into the living room. Her dad had moved and taken up the big chair in the corner of the living room, but he was still cleaning out one of his guns. It wasn't until she was in the room, did she hear what the guys were talking about.

Plopping down next to her fifteen year old brother, Sammy, she tuned into what they were saying. Apparently there was a case in a county that wasn't very far away from where they were. Rumors said that an old woman would help heal the 'broken heart' of anyone who came to visit her. There were also quite a few questionable deaths popping up all around the region. John thought that they might tie in together, and then asked who wanted to drive and look around the next day.

Jules immediately spoke up. "I'll do it. I don't have anything else to do, anyway." She added when they all gave her a weird glance after she answered so quickly.

Nodding slowly, but still giving her a weird look, her dad agreed. Then he said that she would leave early in the morning and then try and get back home before the next day. He didn't want them to waste any time on some quack story. Jules moved her head up and down in agreement, and went into the kitchen for a cup of tea before she went to bed. She was dipping the tea bag into the hot water when Dean walked in.

"So.. I thought you were going out to one of the ponds with David and the others, tomorrow. Swimming." He asked, as he leaned against the kitchen table.

With her back to him, she allowed herself to briefly close her eyes. Shit. Why does he have to remember all of these things? "I.. um.. Well, we kind of broke up." She stuttered out. Turning around to face him, with the steaming cup in her hands, she continued. "I mean, we're going to be leaving town soon anyway." He just lifted his one eyebrow. She just shifted her weight back and forth. Then after a few awkward seconds, she made up an excuse to leave, and then went into her bedroom.

It wasn't until late at night, when her thoughts began to have a mind of their own. Questions flowed, the day's events repeated over and over again, and then the hope that maybe this old woman could really be genuine, and maybe help ease some of her pains.

June 25, 1997

Juliana started on the road pretty early. It only took about an hour to get to the town, but then when she got there she had to dig around and find some information about the old gal. While researching she found out that a couple of people that went to visit the old woman, were actually, in fact, ones that died. The hours flew by as she read article after article. She started thinking that all the rumors really were justified, but she just couldn't find hard evidence that it was the old lady, so she decided to find another place to research. Just as she walked outside, the wind picked up and blew all of her papers to the ground, and when she started to retrieve them, a wrinkly hand popped out of nowhere to help her.

"Old Maeve Thompson, huh?" A rough, yet weary, voice asked her. She looked up and saw an old man attached to the hand, his eyes skimming the newspaper titles.

"That's right." She answered. Jules didn't know what to make of the man. "Do you know her?"

"Know her? I went to school with her." He answered with a jolly grin. Okay. So maybe he wasn't all that bad. "You won't get any information from these newspapers though." He said while slapping the palm of his hand with the stack he picked up. "You should go and talk to Gregory." He nodded in the direction of the main road.

"Gregory?" She questioned.

"Yeah-up." He managed to make the simple word into two syllables. She was starting to like him already. "Her great-nephew. He owns the produce stand a little over a mile down. You can't miss it." With that he tilted his frayed hat down in a polite goodbye, and went along on his way. She couldn't help but grin at his back. It would have been amazing to sit down and have a conversation with that guy.

Juliana followed the man's directions, and at exactly one mile she saw a poorly built shack on the side of the road. And standing right there was the skinniest boy she'd ever seen. It was so scary how thin he was. You would think that an owner of a place that sells food would eat once in a while. His head popped up as soon as he heard her tires hit gravel. After adjusting his hat, and made sure that his button-down shirt was tucked in, he was all smiles.

"Good afternoon, ma'am." he greeted.

"Afternoon. " She said back. "You wouldn't happen to be Gregory, would you?" That gave him a slight shock.

"I certainly am. What can I do you for?" He questioned.

"I was told that you had some information on Maeve Thompson. I'm wondering if you could help me out." His face dropped after she said that. He had been expecting someone to actually buy some of his produce for once. Seeing his face go a total 180, she backtracked and said, "But only after I have a look at your fruit. It all looks incredible" And it really did. She wondered why he didn't have as many customers. After pondering the different fruits, she decided on buying a crate of apples. Sam and Dean would eat them up by tomorrow. Then she decided to buy a couple of grapefruits for her dad. That'd make him smile.

Gregory took her money, and then gave exact change back. Out of the corner of her eye she saw an empty tip jar, and pulled out her wallet. She put the change he had given her in the jar, along with another forty dollars. Maybe he'll buy his dinner out that night.

His smile started to grow. "What do you want to know about old Maeve?" he asked as he leaned against the table.

"Well, I've heard some rumors about her that…" She started.

"Those ain't rumors, ma'am." He interrupted. She could see in his eyes that he'd been asked that question one too many times.

"So… She's what exactly?" I tried to continue the conversation.

Shaking his head, he answered, "No one really knows. Some say she's a witch, others think she's worshipin' something evil. My pa never really talks about her. What I do know, is that if you get close enough, she eats your heart out, not literally 'course, but a lot of folk that goes out to her, comes back really hurt, or dead."

Jules nodded, and then asked, "So how do you get to her?" When his eyes widened and his body physically balked, she assured him that she wasn't going to go visit the woman. "I'm just doing a paper in summer school about urban legends, and since this was so close to my town, I thought it would be a good idea to write about it." She said nonchalantly as she brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"Well… as long as you're not gonna go there…"He trailed off until she nodded her head in agreement. "People say that you have to go to the big lake twenty minutes away, and go to the edge of the beach, but not say a thing. Then you're supposed to look at yourself in the water, and she's just gonna show up. I've never seen her, so it's probably not true." He tried to tell her.

"No, of course not." She placated. "You've been a lot of help, Gregory, thank you." She said as she gave him a soft smile. He couldn't help but blush.

"You come back at any time, you hear?" He told her.

She nodded and said, "You bet." And then walked off to her car, carrying her bags full of fruit, leaving the skeleton-boy by the side of the road.

Juliana arrived at the lake in exactly twenty minutes. "Boy, these people sure know their driving around here." She whispered. She took her sunglasses off and sat them on the passenger seat. Breathing in, she swiftly got out of the car and took in the view. The sun was setting and it seem like the water was seeping from the pink sky. It was beautiful. She looked around to see if she could see an older woman, but found no one around. As she reached the end of the beach, she debated if she was really going to do this or not. It's not like she even knew how to get rid of her, but she had to try somehow. Heaving a small sigh, she knelt in the rocky sand.

It seemed like she was staring at her reflection for the longest time, when she felt a huge burst of wind hit her sideways. Looking up from her face she turned around and saw a swarm of leaves coming at here at top-speed. They past by without out touching her. 'That was so weird.' She looked back into the water, but this time it seemed cloudy. Squinting, she looked closely. It was like the water got murky all of a sudden. Then she felt her body start to sway. Her head felt weightless and her body felt like she was going through vertigo. She tried to stand back up, but her knees buckled from underneath.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw two feet sliding slowly up to her. She held up her head, and saw one of the creepiest old women she's ever seen. Maeve was all wrinkly with stringy dark gray hair covering most of her face. It was then, that the older lady opened her mouth.

"I'm so lonely…" Her voice echoed out. "Stay with me. Don't leave me alone." Juliana could only stare at her from her slouching position. "I'm very companionate. Even to strangers. Why don't you stay with me?" Jules didn't respond. "I can heal your heart up. That fool called you names. Let me help you heal."

That made Jules sit up a little further. "You can heal a person's heart? How?" She demanded.

"I just need a small sacrifice." The woman's echoing voice whimpered.

"Who's the sacrifice? Me? David?" The older woman's hand reached forward to touch Juliana's hair, but Jules pulled away harshly. "No! You're going to be the one to heal my heart? My _heart_? Look at you. You can't even heal yourself." She said with a dark glare.

It was true. The woman stood curled into herself, wasting away. Then it seemed to all click. Dozens of news articles that Jules had read earlier that day ran through her mind. The one that seemed to make sense the most was the one about her fiancé drowning in the very lake they were at.

_Some say she's a witch, others think she's worshipin' something evil. _

_Don't leave me alone._

_I just need a small sacrifice._

She wasn't a ghost or a vengeful spirit; she was just a desperate old woman, trying to get back the man she loved. It made sense now. She was trying to raise him from the dead for all these years, by luring depressed people to be apart of some fake 'heart-fixing' ceremony, but instead taking pieces of their souls for her to collect power. The only way to get rid of her was to send to her back to where she belongs.

Jules trembled as she stood up. "You're the one with a broken heart, are you? You're the one that needs to be saved, to be fixed." The old woman followed her thinking that she was going to actually go along with the soul-sucking plan. Once Juliana reached the very edge of the lake she stopped. The woman looked at her with such hope in her milky eyes. It almost made Jules feel bad for what she was about to do.

The younger girl reacted fast. As soon as Maeve took one more step towards her, she stepped to the side, and pushed the woman hard into the water. At first, it seemed like the old lady just got a little wet. But after a few seconds, Juliana saw a presence in the water. All of sudden, a man's hand reached up through the water and grabbed hold of Maeve's arm. She struggled at first, but when she saw her love's face all she could do was give him a tearful smile. They floated out to the middle of the lake, and then just disappeared. Maeve's heart was finally put back together.

June 26, 1997

It was a pretty sunny day when she went out to the cliffs. David was exactly where she thought he would be. If he heard her coming up behind him, he didn't let on. As she stood up next to the picnic table, he lifted his head from the book he was reading. He face was blank. Good. She wasn't there for pleasantries anyway.

"What do you want now, Winchester?" He drawled out, across the table.

Putting both hands on the pieces of wood, she leaned forward, almost touching him. "You can think whatever you want of me, David, but if you so much as whisper a word about my family, or our 'freaky' dealings, I promise you, that I'll show you how awesome my gun toting skills really are." She told him with a level voice. Her glinting eyes gave away her anger.

The only response he gave her was a 'Pfft' and a "Yeah, right." He went back to reading.

She started to turn around, and then changed her mind. Spinning swiftly, she shoved his head onto the table with his book smushed up against his face. "Yeah. That _is_ right." She barked, holding his head in place. "Don't make me remind you again. I won't be nice next time." She pressed a little harder, making him wince even more, and then let him go.

As she started to walk away, David yelled out to her, "You and your older brother are just the same."

Curious she turned around slightly, "What is that supposed to mean?"

Standing up, he responded. "Meaning, that he gave me a visit just yesterday, saying the same exact thing, except for your finesses." He ended sarcastically while trying to crack his neck.

"Dean came to see you?" She asked in disbelief.

"Yeah. Told me to stay the hell away from his sister. Like I wasn't going to do that before." He went on.

She turned around completely and finally finished the walk to her car. Jules just sat in the driver's seat contemplating the events of the past couple of days. When David broke up with her, she felt like someone carved her heart up like Thanksgiving Dinner… but compared to Maeve Thompson's pain, Jules just felt slight sunburn, or maybe even a broken arm. Maeve's whole universe after her fiancé died was like a hurricane, constantly spun about, constantly breaking.

It was times like these when Jules thanked whoever was listening for the loving people that she had in her life. She smiled when she thought back to what David had revealed about Dean. "I love my family." She whispered, and then started out of the gravel parking lot, to show them just how much.


End file.
